Chương 28: The Goblin Ambush

Felicity, Leah, and Xia were crossing the region of Arovaith, a land famous for its pristine yet hostile wilderness, teeming with wild animals and venomous creatures. Among them, snakes were by far the most numerous. Felicity moved forward with her swords already drawn, her eyes constantly scanning the surroundings and her hearing sharpened to catch even the slightest rustle. A sudden buzzing sound broke the silence. A gigantic flying insect armed with a stinger swooped down at her. Felicity reacted instinctively.

One clean, precise slash, and the creature was split in two before it could even touch her. Moments later, several snakes began slithering out of the undergrowth toward her. Felicity twisted her wrists and unleashed a series of air slashes that reduced them to pieces within seconds. Silence returned as abruptly as it had been broken. She was about to sheath her swords when a scream tore through the air.

"FELI!" She spun around and rushed toward the voice. Leah was on the ground, wrapped in the coils of a massive yellow snake that was tightening around her body with increasing force.

"Feli, please…it's crushing me!"

"How the hell did you end up like that?" Felicity growled.

"I don't know! It jumped on me from above…please, it's slimy!"

"Hold still". Felicity focused, stepped forward, and unleashed a single, razor-thin air slash. The invisible blade cleanly severed the snake's head, passing only inches from Leah's neck. The serpent's body collapsed lifelessly to the ground. Leah quickly freed herself, breathing heavily as she tried to shake off the lingering sensation of being constricted. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

"You almost cut me too", she commented, still shaken.

"That's a strange way of thanking me", Felicity replied as she sheathed her swords. A short while later, Xia arrived, as elegant as ever, followed by the horses that obediently made their way to her side.

"You both did well", she said calmly.

"Did you not help because you didn't want to dirty that pretty blue kimono?" Leah shot back. Xia tilted her head slightly.

"That was one of the reasons. But I also knew Felicity would be able to handle them". Felicity glanced at the remains of the creatures.

"They were insignificant beings. Let's keep moving". Xia nodded. Meanwhile, far to the north, Ethan was riding alongside a group of elves when a rain of arrows suddenly descended upon them. Several elves fell immediately, struck in the neck, eyes, and forehead. Ethan felt a searing pain in his shoulder, a full-grown arrow had hit him directly. He lost his balance and tumbled to the ground.

"Damn it…" he growled, crawling toward a nearby tree.

"Goblins!" shouted one elf.

"We're under attack!" cried another. Ethan gritted his teeth, grabbed the shaft of the arrow, and ripped it out of his shoulder with a muffled groan. Drawing his sword, he rushed into the fight. The first goblin he encountered was short, dark green-skinned and wielding a spiked club. It attacked first. Ethan dodged and, with a swift slash, cut its throat. A second goblin lunged at him from behind. Ethan parried the strike at the last possible moment.

"A human fighting alongside elves?" the goblin sneered in a raspy voice.

"How come?"

"And why are you attacking us?" Ethan shot back.

"You don't know? Elves and goblins have been enemies for thousands of years". The goblin attacked again. Ethan blocked every blow before thrusting his sword straight through its heart. He looked around and spotted Renlin on the ground. Two goblins were holding her down while a third approached laughing, his hands already reaching for his trousers.

"Hold still, you damned elf". Ethan didn't hesitate. He dashed forward and drove his blade through one goblin's skull from behind. The other turned around, but Ethan dodged his attack and decapitated him with a single clean strike. The third goblin stumbled backward in shock, his cruel grin vanishing instantly. Before he could react, Ethan stepped forward and swung his sword in a horizontal arc, slicing through the goblin's head and splitting it in half. The creature collapsed lifelessly to the ground.

He walked over to Renlin and offered her a hand. She took it without hesitation.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yes…I think so. Thank you". The surviving goblins began to retreat, driven back by the elves' arrows until they were finally out of range.

"Come back here, cowards!" one of the elves shouted. Ethan wiped the blood from his forehead and lowered his gaze to his sword, still stained from battle. Then he looked at Renlin.